Mistletoe Moments
by zelda49
Summary: [FlackAiden, DannyOC, MacStella, three oneshots] The holidays can be so romantic...
1. Don & Aiden

Aiden moved about the lab quietly, almost tiptoeing as she walked from one empty room to another. There were other people there, of course, but they were few and far between on Christmas Eve. So she roamed from room to room, taking her time and thoroughly going over the evidence from her most recent case with no distractions.

She was bent over peering into a microscope when Don arrived.

"Hey," he called as he walked into the room.

She lifted her eyes from the scope and smiled. "Hey."

Some very naughty thoughts flitted through his mind at the sight of her, but steeled himself against them. They had an agreement to be professional at work, and he was determined to stick to it.

"I spent the entire evening running down the alibi Walker gave us," he told her in an even voice. "Turns out, he wasn't where he said he was."

"No!" Aiden replied with mock surprise. Then laughing, she continued, "Where was he?"

Don smiled broadly, knowing they had just broken the case open. "He was in the south Bronx fencin' a stolen necklace."

"Did it happen to be a pink enamel heart with a diamond in it?" she asked, describing the victim's piece of jewelry.

"Bingo," he grinned.

"That's enough for a warrant…and when I get his DNA, I can compare it to the blood stain I found on the victim's jacket."

"We got him."

They shared a victorious smile for a moment before Don finally realized that they were almost completely alone. "Where is everybody? It's like a ghost town in here."

"They're all on vacation," she replied, "or with their families. We had to keep a crew on 'cause crimes are still committed this time of year and this time of night, of course, but there's only a few of us."

"How come you're working?"

She shrugged. "I wanted to go over this case again by myself…and I didn't have any plans tonight, so…"

He blushed a little at the last part. "I'm sorry, Aid…I tried to get tonight off…"

She moved toward him, reaching out and touching his cheek softly. "It's okay, you don't have to explain it to me. I know how this job is."

He took her hand in his and kissed it gently, stepping closer to her. "You still want me to go to your grandmother's with you tomorrow?"

"Of course I do. It wouldn't be Christmas without going to my grandmother's." She smiled impishly and squeezed his hand. "And I'm gonna have fun introducing you to the Burn family."

He winced slightly as she said it, but was relieved she wasn't angry with him. "As long as your brothers don't try and start anything…"

She took another step closer to him, her free hand traveling slowly up his chest. "Don't worry…I'll protect you."

He laughed. "But who's gonna protect me from you?"

"You're on your own there," she purred.

A dopey grin spread across his face as he slipped his arms around her, every thought of their professionalism pact having fled his brain. "I'm looking forward to that."

Her fingers slid through his hair and she leaned up, closing her eyes and parting her lips, but he stopped her just before her mouth reached his.

"Wait," he told her, fumbling through his pockets. "I brought you something." He fumbled another minute before he found a green, leafy branch and pulled it triumphantly from his coat.

"What's that?" Aiden asked.

The dopey smile returned. "Mistletoe."

She laughed, reaching for him again. "That's very romantic, Detective Flack."

He held the plant over their heads and pulled her close to him, leaning down to finish what she had begun. "You bring it out in me, Detective Burn."

He kissed her, softly at first but with growing intensity. After several minutes, the two reluctantly separated, breathless and dizzy.

Don leaned his forehead against hers and smiled happily. "Merry Christmas, Aid."

She returned his smile sweetly. "Merry Christmas, Donny."


	2. Danny & Maddie

A/N: I borrowed the female lead from my other fic _It Could Happen to You_ to pair with Danny here, partly because I love the way they interact together and partly because after writing them for so long now, I can't imagine Danny with anyone else ;) You don't, however, have to have read any part of the story to understand this little snipit. Also, this one was inspired by my students here in Maryland who have not had the pleasure (wink, wink) of the Midwestern winters I grew up with. Enjoy!

* * *

"Danny, will you relax?"

Maddie sat on the couch in the darkened living room, surrounded by candles, trying to smother a mirthful smirk at Danny standing anxiously at the window.

"I am relaxed," he replied quickly.

She felt her mouth still trying to curve into a smile, but continued to fight it out of consideration for Danny's feelings. "Honey, it's just a little snow."

"It's more than a _little_ snow," he shot back. "It's piling up everywhere…"

She couldn't hold back any longer and her lips twitch into a broad grin. "Come on, Danny, you're from here—I know you've been through snow storms before."

He turned from the window and frowned unhappily. "Yeah I've been through snow storms before, but they don't happen that often in the city. 'Specially not this bad. We might even lose power…"

"That's why we have the candles," she reminded him, chuckling. "It'll be okay."

He went back to the window, unable to take his eyes off the falling flakes. "Of course it'll be okay. I just didn't think I'd need a shovel to get out of my fifteenth-floor apartment, that's all."

"Amateur."

He turned toward her again. "Just because you're used to snow-shoeing to you car in the morning doesn't mean I want to."

She laughed out loud at him this time. "I never snow-shoed," she corrected. "I have snow-skied, snowmobiled, played football in the snow, and had snowball fights, but I have never snow-shoed."

"Come on, you know what I mean. This is your kind of weather. You told me yourself that you got this much snow on a regular basis when you were a kid."

"I know," she smiled. "You're just so easy to tease right now…"

He huffed an unintelligible reply and crossed his arms as he returned his gaze to the window, making her laugh again as she rose from the couch to join him.

"Hey, look on the bright side," she said with a playful note in her voice, sliding a hand up his muscular arm. "If the power goes out, you'll have to spend the whole night keeping me warm."

He looked down at her out of the corner of his eye without uncrossing his arms. "Keeping you warm, huh?" he responded uncertainly.

"Yeah, and I might have grown up with harsh winters, but I hate being cold," she told him with all the seriousness she could muster.

The features of his face began to soften despite his efforts to stay mad at her. "You know, I never liked being cold either."

Her hand slid down his back and found its way around his waist while his arm automatically wrapped itself around her shoulders. "And you gotta admit, it's kinda pretty…the snow falling and the city all lit up…"

"Not as pretty as you," he smiled, kissing her hair and squeezing her affectionately.

She giggled. "Quick on the draw tonight."

He smiled crookedly. "The thought of keeping you warm tonight is beginning to cheer me up."

"Y'know babe, I'm kinda cold _now_," she winked.

He turned toward her and slid his free arm around her, drawing her tightly against him as he leaned in. "Well, let's just see what we can do about that," he mumbled against her lips.

She laughed again and ran her fingers through his hair as he kissed her slowly, enjoying the feeling of her body in his arms, her mouth against his.

When they broke apart, her eyes were shining. "I'm feeling warmer already."

"And there's more where that came from," he promised, kissing her neck and nibbling gently on her ear.

"Good," she grinned, "because the snow's really comin' down now…"

"Snow?" he grinned back, his lips finding hers once again. "What snow?"


	3. Mac & Stella

Stella stood in the living room of her apartment, the darkness of the night outside held at bay by only the glow of the candles she had lit and the twinkle of the lights she was stringing on her Christmas tree. One of the local radio stations had taken to playing nothing but holiday music for the last few weeks of the year, and she sang softly along with each song as she worked.

When the lights were strung, she began hanging ornaments, one by one, choosing each branch carefully for each ornament. The music shifted from a peppy, up-beat carol to the slow, sad strains of the Eagles' _Please Come Home for Christmas_.

Stella frowned. She had never liked that song. Because of her family-less life, she had never had a home to go to at Christmas, and the Eagles reminded her of it every year.

_Choirs will be singing Silent Night  
Christmas carols by candlelight  
Please come home for Christmas  
Please come home for Christmas  
If not for Christmas, by New Year's night_

This year, though, the frown was not because of her lack of a family, it was because of her lack of Mac. He had taken a few of the millions of vacation days he had on the books and headed to Chicago to visit his parents, leaving her in charge of the lab and alone for Christmas.

"He'll be back for New Year's," she said out loud, trying to convince herself that she was okay with the arrangement. "And he hasn't' seen his family in ages…"

_Friends and relations send salutations  
Sure as the stars shine above  
This is Christmas, yeah, Christmas my dear  
The time of year to be with the one you love_

"The one I love is in Chicago," she grimly explained to the radio.

"No he isn't," a cheerful voice called to her as a parka-clad man walked through the door. "He's right here."

"Mac!" She dropped the ornament she was holding and rushed over to him, throwing her arms around him gleefully. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled and held her tightly against him, despite the parka and the melting snow that covered it. "I missed you," he said simply, closing his eyes as he breathed in the scent of her hair.

"I missed you, too," she said softly. Then she pulled back. "But what about your family? You should be with them for the holidays…"

"I will be," he told her in his usual understated manner. This time, though, there was a twinkle in his eye. "And so will you."

"What?"

"Our flight leaves tomorrow morning."

"What?" she repeated, not following his line of thinking.

He shed his parka and gloves and pulled her close again, running his fingers through her thick curls, taking in every feature of her face with his eyes and every curve of her body with his arms. "You are coming home to Chicago with me for a proper Midwestern Christmas."

Her arms slid around his shoulders and she raised an eyebrow at him. "Who's gonna take care of the lab?"

"The night-shift supervisor," he replied. "His family is all here in New York…plus I bribed him with a couple of extra vacation days over the summer."

She grinned. "So we're going to Chicago…"

"…tomorrow…"

"…together?"

He leaned in, his breath quickening and his heart pounding, his lips curled into a playful grin. "Yes." He kissed her softly, feeling the thrill run through his body as his mouth found hers. "I love you," he whispered.

She smiled brightly. "I love you, too." She leaned up and kissed him again, but when she drew away this time she had a worried look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Mac asked, suddenly wondering if he had overstepped a boundry somewhere along the line.

"It's awfully cold in the Windy City," she told him with a glint in her eyes. "You're gonna have to keep me warm…"

He laughed, leaning down to kiss her again. "With pleasure."

_There'll be no more sorrow…no grief and pain  
And I'll be happy, happy once again_


End file.
